To Touch A Star
by Ashe Ramsey
Summary: The manipulations of a covetous force tears assunder the destiny of a young girl. As her past comes to a close like the final chapter of a book a new story begins, but is she fated for the same end - or will her fairytale be achieved? Sessh/OC
1. Things past cannot be recalled

Grey. Everything seemed grey in the newborn hours of waking twilight when none but he saw fit to move about. The cold north wind whipped about him mercilessly, and on its breath came a scent so sweet his teeth ached. There was blood shed on the western lands and he was robbed of the satisfaction of being its cause. With his intended destination forgotten, he lifted his nose to the trail.

Lounging at the waters edge, she let her eyes wander over her newest acquisition. A corpse. With the fingertips of one dainty hand she tipped the scruffed chin of Isamu toward her so that she might better appreciate the beauty of his face... Deep set eyes of azure stared far into the heavens, past her curious gaze, past life, and all things of this earth. Though there was no mistaking his intent when he had come upon her she still regretted the loss of a soul. Her wakizashi lay buried hilt deep in his chest, and despite herself... she flinched. As she withdrew the instrument of death she allowed herself a moment of recollection to admire the flawless precision with which his death was delivered. A strong presence pulled her from her musings, forcing her attention to the present and the new dangers that arrived with it. The aching muscles of her body knew this song, and with the ease and grace of one long practiced she felt into a defensive stance.

He watched her, and under the intensity of the stare she returned he felt every bit as naked as she actually was and acted none like. Still, feminine curves were the last thing on his mind. The one who dared intrude upon his lands was foreign to him. No doubt ignorant of the boundaries of his vast territory, she was never the less guilty and deserving of swift and absolute punishment.

" You trespass here. Kill here. You disrespect this Sesshoumaru." His gaze dipped low to the blood sprayed across her upper body.. following the macabre pattern to one porcelain cheek. There was no denying her crimes and had she tried to he would have ended her then. Still, her silence was equally maddening.

The dull glow just beneath the horizon cast shadows across her exposed flesh. A moment of hungry anticipation passed between the two, their shared wild blood eager for the sacrifice of life a violent clash would leave in its wake. It passed, reigned in tight by the cool rationality of a well disciplined mind. At last she blinked, rising with grace unparalleled... and as her bare feet touched upon the green earth, the sky caught fire. His inferior by several inches in height, she was never the less a commanding figure in her ethereal beauty. To see her, to breath her in, was to want her. It was irrational, and the undoing of Isamu, her guard. She stepped over the disgraced mans chest while giving Sesshoumaru a wide birth as she collected her belongings. Wary of the strong sense of old world mannerisms that seemed prominent in this one, she was careful to face him at all times even if her eyes were elsewhere.

" No disrespect was meant. Life and death wait for no man.." As if it were an after thought, her lips part around an addition "or Lord." Shrugging into the heavy brocade kimono- a lovely thing of summer pink silk- she moved to pass him by and be on her way only to pull up short as a pale hand encircles her throat. She had anticipated such a move ( his entire body radiated tension) but felt it would be wiser to allow the little Lordling his arrogant pride if she wanted to avoid further conflict. And so she suffered his petty display of dominance and power, her chin lifted defiantly, her eyes meeting his with a bravery uncommon in the women of her era. The ghost of a smile tugged at her full lips as his upturned nose twitched. He had caught her scent.

She smelled like nothing on this earth. Heady as it was elusive, he could not place her scent but found it pleasing none the less. The lids of his eyes and the thick lashes they supported seemed suddenly heavy, and he found himself taking another deep breath though such a thing was hardly necessary. He could taste her, the sweetness of her very being lingered on his tongue and in his delicate nose. Still, his indomitable will would not allow something so trivial as the scent of a slip of a girl to overwhelm him. His reaction was swift and impossible to foresee in its spontaneity.

In a blink of her dove-grey eyes the kashira of Tokijin met the side of her head with force. The malice of the blade overwhelmed her, and with one final accusatory look at the lord of the western lands from wide eyes the world faded to black.


	2. A House Divided Cannot Stand

"She cried hard, maybe because she had to cry so quiet; maybe because she felt the same way about tears she did about deceit, hating herself for doing it, hating him because she had to."  
- William Faulkner, _As I Lay Dying_

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_She awoke…._

The blow to her head had addled her senses and unsettled her stomach. Instinct demanded she shake off such weakness and seek out any sign of her attackers lingering presence, for what demon would abandon their prey alive?. In the end her body won out and she turned over onto her side to heave. It was then that the full weight of the present hit her.

The air was choked with smoke, fire, and death. Her vision was blurred by tears and yet nothing would ever erase the memories of that which she could see. Time stood still like the stagnant waters of a shallow pond. And she was at its center. Sinking, slowly sinking, into the burning pit of hell that consumed her very world. A chorus of screams filled the air and rang shrill in her ears in time with the sickening sound of flesh being cleaved from bone. Adrenaline coursed through her veins and lent her the strength of desperation necessary to drag herself to her feet and mount the hill top between herself and those she knew to be her own closest kin.

She had been riding point for three days now with Isamu as her only escort, and at her back a distance of a few meager miles Lady Kumikyo and the remaining handful of there household followed close. A great rift between her father and his only brother had resulted in a territorial war that wiped all others of their line from existence. Those that travelled now to impose upon the hospitality of the Western Lady were being cut down before her very eyes. She wept. Tangible sadness stained her cheeks as surely as blood, and with trembling limbs did she sink into the waiting embrace of blessed oblivion with her cheek to the cool earth.

_She was Mihikari Tsukia of the western principality of Kyou, the only child of Lady Kumikyo and her husband, the sovereign Lord, Takeshi….._

Situated on a fertile plot of earth known for yielding ore and gems of superior quality, Kyou flourished while other larger nations floundered. Tradesmen of all kinds and great skill gathered here as a meeting place between supply and demand to work their craft and scrape an earnest existence from the stone and barter of the place. While small in area, Kyou housed a sizable population though only a third of the inhabitants had sworn fealty to Lord Takeshi. Perhaps if the free had raised arms to join the brave Kyou would still stand..

A bitter rivalry existed between the brothers Takeshi and his adopted sibling Hiko. Being the eldest, Takeshi inherited the right to rule as well as the hand of the eldest daughter of their father's oldest and greatest ally. Hiko coveted all these things, though it was Kumikyo he desired above all else, and his heart was consumed by darkness. With murder in his heart and malice on his breath he crept into the room of his father, and with his knife raised high and naked, ended the life of the old man who had first showed him kindness. Half the treasures of the Tsukia family lined his pockets as Hiko fled. As if by an ironic twist of fate, these same jewels that proclaimed the wealth and history of their family line would pay for the mercenaries that would end it. Hiko gathered a sizable force of all kinds to his side. Demon and human alike raised their blades in the name of profit to march on Kyou. Lord Takeshi was brave and strong both but he was no match for the treachery of his brother… and before the sun had raised again Kyou had fallen.

Hiko sought Lady Kumikyo for in his vanity he thought he could win her heart. The same fates that had ordained the end of Tsukia would see Lady Kumikyo and her daughter, Mihikari, on the high road to the western lands heart.. Bound for the protection of the great dog demon family who ruled there. The western Lady had long been a friend to Kyou due to her great love for the fine things they produced. Over the years a sort of quiet friendship had been formed between the two ladies, and though The House of the Crescent Moon could not politically offer military aid to the Tsukia family it had been assured they would offer a new home and a fresh start to its surviving members.

Many years earlier a pact had been made between the two great ladies in order to ease a mother's heart by ensuring the safety of their respective children. Should one perish or otherwise became incapable, the other would take in the pup as if it were there own. It was this thought that Kumikyo kept near to her heart as she rode away from the dying fires of the siege… abandoning her fair city to the hands of Hiko in order to protect the life of her only daughter. Mihikari sat astride a bay gelding at the ladies side, and she looked very much like her father just then. The full lips of her mother were tugged down in a tight frown as she pouted; luminous grey eyes fixed upon the ground as they emptied her heart of hate through a fierce glare.. and Kumikyo smiled. Mihikari was a warrior born and bred, and as such her first immature instinct was to fight and to protect. She could not possibly understand the hopelessness of the situation for her head was still full of heroic notions of good conquering over evil, and perseverance winning no matter the odds. A vicious wind tore at their clothes just then and whipped at their backs, drawing a ragged cough from the lips of Lady Kumikyo. Blood spilled forth in dainty, concealable droplets of sanguine. Her mate had passed some hours earlier and the pain of lingering where she did not belong was wearing on her body. Her mate waited for her in the next life and she would go to him soon. Still, she must endure for a time to ensure the future of sweet Mihikari..

With a swift kick to the horse's flanks her daughter rode ahead, her sworn protector at her side as they dusted those in their wake. Her daughter rode hard to escape the grip of her own sadness…

The road would only grow longer and harder still for Mihikari, for destiny cannot be eluded.


	3. Familiarity Breeds Contempt

'I wonder if I've been changed in the night? Let me think: was I the same when I got up this morning? I almost think I can remember feeling a little different. But if I'm not the same, the next question is 'Who in the world am I?' Ah, that's the great puzzle!'"  
- Lewis Carroll, _Alice in Wonderland_, Ch. 2

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Rin-chan knew that her lord was busy, as he always was during the months of spring, and so she set out to entertain herself for the day. He was gone often and seldom seen and yet that was just fine for Rin. She did not need to see him to know he was near. Her bare feet brushed against the castles bamboo flooring with barely more than a whispers breath to mark her passage (she had learned to emulate the grace of her Lord so's not to displease him with her noise) and on a whim she reached out with a hand to trail her fingertips along the walls. He was here. In the floor and the walls and in the air. This was home and her Lord would always come back to it. This knowledge, the secret knowing of a child's mind, allowed for an added spring to her step and the sharp tug of a grin upon her lips. As she rounded the corner to the third hall in the direction of the castles interior the pleasant sound of Master Jakken's usual griping greeted her ears and she knew even before investigating that today would be a good day.

Several sensations entered the foggy realm of her consciousness and not one of them saw fit to make any sense. Colors without names flooded her vision, and with them came the realization of waking. Her memory returned as soon as her heavy lashes lifted and without giving it much thought she sprung into action. The ridge of her knuckles connected solidly with something fleshy and... green? A hideous monstrosity no more than two feet in height with bulging yellow eyes and a voice to grate on the nerves of a saint lay crumpled at her feet. Despite the heavy blow to its/his?? head the thing continued to squawk at her. An innocent and obviously delighted giggle sounded at the door, drawing her eyes to another equally miniature though decidedly cuter guest in...kami, she didn't even know where in the nine hells she was! Giving the green lump a discreet kick, she moved toward the door with the intent of brushing past the girl child only to have her latch onto the fabric at her hip. With one elegant brow arched she glanced down at the creature of the gap-toothed smile and impossibly large brown eyes…

The creature she had not long ago deprived of its balance staggered to its feet and just as promptly toppled again, dragging the lacey clothe atop the bedside table along with him. A delicate piece of pottery shattered against the floor near the toads head and the fine ground dust of porcelain was scattered everywhere. A single piece of substantial size grazed the exposed flesh of her foot, drawing blood and garnering her attention in its wake. A stamp of a crescent moon decorated the plain white of the shards backside. Her eyes lingered for a long moment. She knew this sign… This vase. This place. Him. Sesshoumaru…

A chill as bitter as the north wind dominated the doorway and the attention of both demons assembled immediately focused in on it as survival instinct demanded. The Lord of the manor had arrived. Here stood Sesshoumaru, and she knew him then. Arrogance was the very making of his perfectly symmetrical features. Wide spaced eyes of amber defied death and life itself from beneath slender silver brows. An upturned nose rested above perfect tiers of a near translucent rose whose veins are evident beneath pale flesh. A complexion both radiant and ethereal, his skin was as gossamer as a fairy's wing with all the unyielding consistency of stone. And he was beautiful. However; at the touch of a smoldering glare all thoughts of such nonsense were wiped from her being and her mind was once again set to thoughts of angry defiance. A low growl escaped her lips and one of greater force tore its way from his throat in response. Like a chastised pup, her demon curled in on itself and withdrew from her immediate persona in a show of submission to the powerful male despite her internal protests. Sesshoumaru was never one to allow himself to be easily read by showing his emotions clearly, and yet she knew by the faint twitch of his bottom lip that he was pleased by the natural betrayal of her beast. He knew no mercy. He allowed the green monstrosity to remain and smugly eye her forced submission to his Lord's power as if it was his own. Shame colored her cheeks on behalf of her pride, and she moved to give the toad another kick before glancing down to find the ningen girl still glued to her side. It would seem that Sesshoumaru had remembered her existence at a similar time as his cool gaze rested upon the dark head of the child as well. His voice held more gentility than she could recall ever echoing forth from him when he spoke now to this girl through the toad. It was as if she were his pup.

"Jakken, Take Rin back to her room. She has been exposed to enough trouble for one day". These words were law, and as such they were quickly obeyed.

Something within her all but purred at the silky baritone that was his voice and she decided then that she hated it.


End file.
